


It's good enough to keep me warm

by lady_mab



Category: Friends at the Table (Podcast)
Genre: F/F, Secret Samol, funtimes in aubade, this is as close to domestic as they can get tbh
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-31
Updated: 2021-01-31
Packaged: 2021-03-18 08:14:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,864
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29115075
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lady_mab/pseuds/lady_mab
Summary: There’s a beat as Adaire looks at anywhere other than meeting Hella’s gaze. She fusses with her capelet, brushes strands of hair out of her eyes, shifts her weight from one foot to another. This is an altogether strange side to see to Adaire, who is normally incredibly still and in control. “She invited me too,” she finally admits. “Adelaide. To the dinner party.”“Oh,” Hella says, uncertain if the invitation really warrants such a negative reaction. “Well, we’re going then, aren’t we?”Adaire gives one of her signature unamused snorts and crosses her arms pointedly. “Please. We both know that I was merely a polite addition.”“It’s my boat.”“I’m aware.”“Well, I want you there.”Adaire freezes, but doesn’t say anything.Hella pushes her luck, and reaches out to let one hand brush against Adaire’s elbow. “So will you come?”
Relationships: Adaire Ducarte/Adelaide Tristé/Hella Varal
Comments: 4
Kudos: 12





	It's good enough to keep me warm

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Suedeuxnim](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Suedeuxnim/gifts).



> So why have we got somethin' to prove?  
> And why am I still losin'?  
> As I want it too bad, want it too bad for you  
> And we're fightin' where you told me to bruise  
> And I'm tryin' to forget it  
> But if maybe I go, then will you go too?  
> \- Yumi Zouma's "[Bruise](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CByY-jHK62E)"

Adelaide trails her fingers over a row of jackets as she glides past, only paying them the slightest bit of mind. She moves like a woman on a mission — or at least, a woman on a mission while in disguise, trying to play the part of an idle shopper to throw off the tail. 

But it takes a con to know one, and Adaire isn’t fooled in the slightest. So she plays the part of a helpful store manager, trailing along behind Adelaide and offering anecdotes like, “It was based off a design from Rosemerrow,” to “Samothes himself ordered a pair of those”. 

All because Hella is too much of a coward to come out and do this herself. 

And it’s _not_ like Hella is subtle. Bless her, but she’s about as subtle as a merchant at market, and not in a good way. She lurks a few aisles over, catching Adaire’s eyes every so often with elaborate hand gestures, though she quickly ducks out of the way if Adelaide turns to follow Adaire’s line of sight. 

“Is she a useful employee?” Adelaide asks, pulling a dress from the rack. 

Adaire is about to sidestep the question to point out that the dress isn’t Adelaide’s size when the other woman holds it up in front of Adaire instead. She’s not used to feeling so on display, and freezes beneath the study as her brain bleats out a distress signal in confusion. 

“Hmm,” Adelaide muses, sounding tempted, then puts the dress back. “It’s just that she’s been following us for the last floor and a half, but she has yet to come say hello.” 

“She typically works in the back of house.” Adaire turns her glare to Hella, who is hiding behind a display of sun hats, and makes a gesture of her own that does not leave any room for question. 

“Oh? Perhaps there is some sort of inventory problem that she is trying to alert you to.” 

Adaire snorts and presses her lips into a thin line. “If she has a suggestion, then she should come over and voice it.” 

There’s a delicate laugh from the woman beside her as Adelaide leans over to inspect a display of the new jewelry pieces that were just designed. “Go easy on her, Adaire. We are in paradise, after all.” 

While Adaire isn’t too certain just what Aubade being ‘paradise’ has anything to do with Hella being a frustrating handful when it comes to Adelaide, she offers up a [[delicate]] shrug in answer and moves to the other side of the counter. “Do any of the items catch your eye? After your input with the last line, I’ve been looking to use more pearls.” 

A genuine smile of pleasure flits over Adelaide’s lips, and she traces an idle shape on the glass with the tip of her finger. “You flatter me.” 

Adaire offers another shrug, trying to make it look as aloof as she can manage. “Applying my good head for business is common sense, not flattery.” 

Adelaide laughs again, amused. “And here I was thinking that you were doing it to try and get my attention.” 

“I thought I already had it.” 

“You were following close on my heels through the store…” 

Adaire affects an expression of mock surprise, hand pressed to her chest as she gasps. “Miss Adelaide, that is just good customer service. We wouldn’t want Her Majesty Dripping in Pearls to have to wait for anything.” 

“Then don’t let it be said that your guest assistance skills are not up to par! Come, tell me about this piece here…” 

* * *

Hella waits until she knows that it is safe. And then she waits a little bit longer. And longer still until Adaire finally hunts her down with a look that isn’t visibly angry, but Hella knows. 

“Did you and Adelaide have a fight or something?” Adaire asks as she starts to refold the scarves that, in her nervous state, Hella had rumpled into a whirlpool of dyed fabrics. 

“No. Of course not.” She scoffs and crosses her arms over her chest. 

That feels too defensive, so she lets them drop back to her side. 

Adaire looks up at her, thoroughly unamused. 

“I don’t know. I just always feel intimidated around her lately. She keeps showing up on my boat to go on rides with me.” Hella runs a hand through her hair, ruffling it in frustration. 

“Have you told her to stop?” 

“Well… No.” 

“Do you _want_ her to stop?” 

Hella doesn’t actually know the answer to this one, though Adaire looks about ready to leave this conversation out of sheer annoyance. “She could at least wait to be invited.” 

Adaire rolls her eyes, a gesture that Hella has never enjoyed being on the receiving end of. “Then you are really going to enjoy this…” she mutters, almost darkly, as she finishes folding the last of the scarves. “She’s invited you to a dinner party on your boat.” 

“A _what_?” Hella sputters. “A party, on my boat?” 

“If you ask me, it was incredibly generous of her to think to invite you.” There is an underlying teasing tone beneath the words, but they still have that bite to them. And, apparently, that was all she wanted to say in the end. 

Adaire simply turns around and leaves. 

Despite the lightness of the parting words, Hella knows that there is something else annoying Adaire besides having to deliver that message. So Hella follows after her, trying not to feel like an annoying puppy underfoot. “Was that really all she said?” 

Adaire stops mid-stride, but Hella is quick enough on her feet that she doesn’t collide with the smaller woman. Still, she’s not prepared for the anger flashing in Adaire’s eyes as she whirls around. “I am not about to be your flirt proxy, Hella Varal. If you want to know if she said something nice about your eyes or whatever, you’ll have to ask her that yourself.” 

“No, Adaire, that isn’t—” She heaves a sigh and debates the risks of reaching out to stop Adaire with a hand on the shoulder or something. “I was wondering what she said to you to make you so annoyed.” 

“I’m not annoyed,” Adaire replies tersely. 

Hella is smart enough to know not to engage with that. “Alright.” 

There’s a beat as Adaire looks at anywhere other than meeting Hella’s gaze. She fusses with her capelet, brushes strands of hair out of her eyes, shifts her weight from one foot to another. This is an altogether strange side to see to Adaire, who is normally incredibly still and in control. “She invited me too,” she finally admits. “Adelaide. To the dinner party.” 

“Oh,” Hella says, uncertain if the invitation really warrants such a negative reaction. “Well, we’re going then, aren’t we?” 

Adaire gives one of her signature unamused snorts and crosses her arms pointedly. “Please. We both know that I was merely a polite addition.” 

“It’s my boat.” 

“I’m aware.” 

“Well, I want you there.” 

Adaire freezes, but doesn’t say anything. 

Hella pushes her luck, and reaches out to let one hand brush against Adaire’s elbow. “So will you come?” 

Apparently the touch pushed her luck in the wrong direction because Adaire drops her arms back to her sides and spins back around. “I’ll help you pick something out to wear if you want to impress that Pearl Empress of yours, and you can bring her a bottle of champagne and my apologies.” 

A sigh that borders on a growl works its way out of Hella’s throat as she resumes following after. “I’m not going if you’re not going.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. It’s your boat.” 

“I know, and I’m only going if you are. She can be on my boat without me for once.” 

While Hella can’t be quite certain, because Adaire turns her head away before she can make sure she’s not imagining things, she thinks that there’s a smug but fond smirk on Adaire’s lips. 

* * *

Adelaide arrives first, naturally. She knows both of their schedules, because if there is one blessed thing about this place, is that it has a routine. And she purposefully picked a day that Adaire and Hella were closing DuCarte’s together, because it guaranteed the success of her plan to a near perfect degree. 

There always is the chance that Adaire actually won’t show, but as Adelaide toys with the new brooch that she bought from DuCarte’s during her visit, she’s certain that she will have a full success. 

She finishes setting up the spread — nothing fancy, but there’s a decent arrangement of cured meats and cheese, apple slices and small desserts. There is only one thing missing. 

Well, one thing and two people, but she’s not concerned. 

Like Ordennan clockwork, footsteps approach down the dock towards the berth where Hella keeps her ship. One pair, heavier and practiced, and nearly masking the lighter tread of the second pair. 

“Perfect,” she says to herself, and takes a seat to welcome the last two members of the party. 

Hella is dressed surprisingly well, though Adelaide always did figure that she was the only one who could make “sweaty in worn leathers” look appealing. That was how they first met, after all, and Hella made a striking impression at the time. 

At her side, Adaire stands dressed as she always is, but she wears a frown like another accessory so it only adds to the charm. And, sure enough, she has a bottle of champagne tucked in the crook of her arm. 

“Oh, you _do_ know how to treat a girl, don’t you?” Adelaide says, clearly delighted. She takes the offered bottle and wipes it down with a cloth so that it will be easier to grip. 

Hella gives her an expression that is hard to read — not quite admonishment, not quite amusement, but somewhere in between — as she helps Adaire into the boat. “You do have glasses, don’t you?” 

“Of course. Now be a darling and open this for us, will you?” She hands the bottle back over to Hella and moves to link her arm with Adaire. “Let’s get comfortable before Hella casts us off, hm?” 

Adaire doesn’t react to the teasing, but her gaze does go to the brooch. She doesn’t say anything about it, but Adelaide can read the expertly contained surprise in Adaire’s expression. 

“See, I told you it would go well with my dress,” Adelaide hums, pressing the tips of her fingers to the enameled surface. “You are a true artisan, Adaire.” 

“You flatter me,” Adaire responds flatly. 

There is a loud _pop_ from behind them as Hella opens the champagne, and Adelaide steps forward to take the bottle and serve it with an expert twist of her wrist.

She hands the first flute to Adaire, then the second to Hella with a wink. The final one she keeps, and sets the bottle into the bucket of ice she had set up before their arrival. “Now, ladies: Let’s have a very pleasant evening, shall we?” 

Adaire and Hella clink their glasses against hers, and Adelaide is unable to help the smile of delight that comes with the sound. 

**Author's Note:**

> HAPPY SECRET SAMOL 2020 EVERYONE BUT ESPECIALLY TO DANNY 😘😘😘 the prompt specifically was "I'd love something dealing with Hella/Adelaide/Adaire's dynamic? It can be set in Aubade or after/during the epilogue of Hieron when they've settled down. Fun in tone, like Adelaide dealing with Rix and Roe or shopping in DuCarte's would be fun! Anything along those lines."
> 
> Love and miss these ladies, thanks for a delightful excuse to write them!!!!


End file.
